Cranberry orange muffins

• yields 1 dozen

2 cups flour

1 TBSP baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

1 cup sugar

4 TBSP melted butter

1 1/4 cup yogurt or sour cream

1/2 tsp orange extract

1/2 tsp vanilla

Orange zest from an orange

2 handfuls dried cranberry

1. Combine dry ingredients and set aside
2. Beat egg and sugar till dissolved and light
3. Add butter, the sour cream in thirds
4. Add extracts and zest
5. Add dry ingredients and fold in cranberries do not over mix. Clumps and a few dry spots is ok
6. Divide into 12 muffin wells and bake at 350 x 25-30 minutes

Really Good Cranberry Sauce

• 12 oz fresh cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 tsp fresh orange zest
• Salt to taste

Combine the sugar, water and orange juice in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil.

Add cranberries and boil for about 5-7 minutes.  Lower the heat and continue to cook till slightly thickened (about 10 minutes).  Sauce will continue to thicken a lot as it cools.

Stir in orange zest and salt to taste.

Refrigerate until ready for use.

Spinach Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette

INGREDIENTS – SALAD

• 1 pound fresh baby spinach
• 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• 1/2 small red onion, chopped
• 6 slices bacon
• 1/2 pont cherry tomatoes, halved
• 4 oz sliced mushrooms
• 3 ounces shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
• dried cranberries for garnish

INGREDIENTS-DRESSING

• 3 TBSP bacon grease
• 3 TBSP olive oil
• 6 TBSP vinegar (cider, red wine, rice)
• 2 TBSP sugar
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook the bacon starting in a cold skillet.  Remove the cooked bacon and reserve 3 TBSP grease for the dressing.  Cut the cooled bacon crosswise into 1/4 inch strips

Combine the dressing ingredients into a jar and shake thoroughly

Pour onto the salad to combine

Holiday Baking – Grandma Corrado’s Butterscotch Icebox Cookies with Cranberry & Pecan Squares

Nothing new to the holiday baking repertoire, just a little tweak to Grandma Corrado icebox cookies and pecan squares:

Grandma Corrado’s Butterscotch Cookies with Cranberries

INGREDIENTS
3 1/2 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 TBSP vanilla
handful walnut halves                                                                                             2/3 cup dried cranberries                                                                                                                 1 tsp cinnamon

INSTRUCTIONS

Cream butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla in a mixer
Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl
Add dry ingredients to sugar mixture                                                                           Add cranberries and mix until ingredients are just combined (the dough will not come together while mixing)
Roll out into a rectangle
Add a row of walnuts in the middle long-ways
Roll the dough into a log
Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a couple hours
Cut into 1/8th inch rounds
Bake at 325 degrees for 9 min until crisp

Pecan Squares (dad’s and Uncle’s Phil’s favorite:)

INGREDIENTS-CRUST

• 1 c flour
• 1/3 c light brown sugar
• 1/4 c pecans
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 6 TBSP cold butter

Pulse the following ingredients in a food processor till crumbly.  Press into a parchment-lined and greased 8X8 glass baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes till golden brown.

INGREDIENTS-FILLING

• 1/3 c heavy cream
• 1/2 c brown sugar
• 1/3 c maple syrup
• 3 TBSP butter
• 3/4 tsp vanilla
• pinch of salt to taste
• 1 1/2 TBSP bourbon
• 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Bring the first 4 ingredients to a boil in a small non-stick saucepan.  Turn of the heat, then add the vanilla, bourbon, salt.  Stir in the pecans then top the warm crust evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees until the center is barely bubbling (20-25 minutes)

Let cool for a few hours and cut into small (or big!) squares.  These actually taste better the day or two after.

Cranberry Spice Bundt Cake

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup almond flour (may make your own by finely grinding almond)
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1cup  (packed) golden brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup plain reduced-fat (2%) Greek-style yogurt
• 1 cup chopped toasted almonds
• 1 cup halved fresh or frozen cranberries (do not thaw)

INSTRUCTIONS

cake

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Whisk first 8 ingredients in medium bowl to blend. Using stand mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add both sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract, then Greek-style yogurt. Add dry ingredients; beat just until blended. Fold in almonds and all cranberries. Transfer batter to prepared Bundt pan (greased and floured well).
• Bake cake until tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack and cool completely.

icing

• Stir powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons orange juice in small bowl until sugar dissolves. Mix in more juice by 1/2 teaspoonfuls to reach consistency of heavy cream. Spoon icing over cake, allowing it to drip down sides. Let stand until icing sets, at least 30 minutes.